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PORTLAND, Ore. — Students at Portland State University have elected an undocumented student as their new student body president.

Luis Villagrana, 21, is a Dreamer and a first-generation college student.

He moved to eastern Oregon right before first grade.

He said his DACA status, and the program’s uncertain future, is what got him involved in student government.

“In this position I am in fear of being deported or picked up in the streets, but it also empowers me by knowing that there is a Dreamer out there advocating for students, and it’s worth the risk of me being so visible to other Dreamers that it’s possible and we should not give up,” Villagrana said.

The sophomore is pursuing a double major in international & global studies and political science.

His one-year term starts June 1.

Portland State has been a sanctuary campus for a little more than year now. It says it has the most diverse student body out of any of Oregon’s public universities.